A Patient’s Story of Recovery: Meet Nikki

My drinking began early in my teenage years. By the time I was 20, I knew I didn’t drink like most people.

I remained functional and managed to graduate from nursing school. When my brother committed suicide in 2010, my using moved to a new level. I began using painkillers quite heavily to stay numb.

Without the lingering odor of alcohol, pills gave me the freedom to use around the clock and stay relatively undetected.

One day I woke up in the hospital on a ventilator from an accidental overdose. I didn’t skip a beat when I was released from the hospital. My disease convinced me the overdose wasn’t my fault. I soon realized I was chemically dependent and unable to function without drugs and alcohol.

I began to believe that I had no value. Not as a wife or as a mom. Being a nurse was the only thing that gave me a sense of value and it was apparent that I would give that to my disease as well if I didn’t get help. With that realization, I checked myself into the Detox Center at Pine Rest.

I will never be cured of my disease of addiction. Recovery is a process that requires many different types of treatment. The services at Pine Rest have given me the tools and resources I need to manage my life-long disease so I can live a joyous life of purpose for my family, loved ones, and myself.

The treatment I received is expensive. I was fortunate to be a beneficiary of Pine Rest’s Patient Assistance Fund (PAF). It took one more burden off the table so that I could focus on healing. Your gift to PAF can help others, like me, find a life of joy and purpose too!

Nikki

Mother, Wife, Nurse and Former Patient

Addiction Services Program at Pine Rest

At Pine Rest, we believe that there should be no wrong door for individuals to access substance use disorder treatment. That’s why we offer a full continuum of addiction services that range from residential detoxification to traditional outpatient services.

Addiction treatments at Pine Rest are evidence-based, which means that over time they have been tested and found to provide predictable outcomes and long-term recovery. Today’s treatment has graduated steps designed to meet the differing needs of each patient and each phase of addiction or recovery. This treatment continuum allows patients to “step-up” or “step-down” to match treatment intensity with their recovery needs.

The Addiction Treatment Program is one of many services supported by Pine Rest’s Patient Assistance Fund (PAF). PAF helps reduce the cost of treatment for individuals and families with financial need.

For more information or to make a donation to the Patient Assistance Fund to help people like Nikki, please visit pinerest.org/Christmas2018